QUESTION 1a

TITLE: Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) and methods used to manage it.

INTRODUCTION

Acid mine drainage occurs naturally within some environments as part of the rock weathering
process, but is significantly worsened by mining, usually within rocks containing an
abundance of sulphide materials. As water comes in contact with the sulphur, it creates a
sulphuric acid. The sulphuric acid then dissolves and leaches out the metals that are in the
ore, creating high concentrations of dissolved metals such as iron, arsenic, and cadmium. As
the water is exposed to oxygen, it oxidizes. When this occurs, all of the oxygen in the water is
consumed, making the water uninhabitable for aquatic life. Moreover, the rust and heavy
metals in the water make it unusable to all of the wildlife that depends on that water source
for survival. However, there are methods used to manage AMD which are preventive
methods and corrective methods.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Acid – any of various water-soluble compounds having a sour taste and capable of turning
litmus red and reacting with a base to form salt.

Drainage – a system of watercourses or drains for carrying off excess water.

Manage – come to terms or deal successfully with.

BODY

Preventive methods are those whose objective is to prevent the production of acid effluents
from the mine. On the other hand, corrective methods are designed to treat the acidic waters
produced by mining, so that they stop being a threat to the environment
Preventive methods

Surface water diversion, this technique tries to reduce the water supply to those potentially
acid-generating materials, by using safeguarding channels, pipes, waterproofed channels,
slope changes around the material area. The application of this technique should be preceded
by accurate hydrological and hydrogeological studies, and it is precisely the lack of these
which sometimes causes the unsuccessful application of this method.

Soil compaction, compaction of the mining wastes decreases their permeability. This
compaction achieves on the one hand the reduction of water flow, which remains longer in
the tailings, hindering the oxidation of the materials and therefore the rate of acid production,
and on the other, the decrease of oxygen diffusion, which slows down pyrite oxidation and
makes the tailings less habitable for Ferro-oxidant bacteria. A decrease of the porosity means
a decrease of both the hydraulic conductivity and oxygen diffusion.

Sealing with clay, mining transfer acidity is produced through groundwater discharge slopes.
Then it is convenient to coat them with clay as the mine hole is filled, thereby reducing the
water input through the mining wastes. This is a very common phenomenon in abandoned
mine pits where an inland lake can be formed, if this circumstance were not taken into
account. This lake becomes an acidic water reservoir, therefore, it is also desirable to seal the
abandoned mine workings.

Corrective methods

A treatment plants by ion exchange, this technology is based on the property of certain
substances to make reversible ion exchanges within saturated solutions. These substances
may be different in nature, synthetic resins with high molecular weight being the most
commonly used. This method is applicable to the acid mine drainage treatment with metal
ions.

Neutralization plants by reverse osmosis, this technique employ semipermeable membranes

that allow the passage of water while retaining dissolved or suspended particles. The typical
membranes, spongy and porous, have a 100 microns thickness, are made of modified
cellulose acetate with one side covered with a dense layer. One of the most important
consequences of the experiments performed so far is the ease with which the membranes
become obstructed, however, this is easy to fix by using sodium thiosulfate.
"In-line system" plants, they are based on a simple and low maintenance method that
simultaneously neutralizes and aerates the water, using the energy of water impulsed by two
parallel injection pumps and a static mixer. Injection pumps suck in air while collecting the
mine acid waters, causing water aeration. After leaving the pump, the water goes to a static
mixer consisting of a series of propylene resin tubes where liquid is kept in a turbulent regime
by using a propeller that promote mixing and reactivity.

CONCLUSION

Acid mine drainage greatly influences water quality and has high environmental and
ecological impacts. It is therefore required to solve this worldwide problem at the earliest
opportunity. There are several preventive techniques and corrective techniques to avoid the
generation of AMD, each of them effective for a different situation.

QUESTION 1b

Principles of rehabilitation:

The Mining Operations Plan (MOP)

Mining operations must not be undertaken other than in accordance with a MOP. The MOP
must address the mining, processing, and rehabilitation operations necessary to comply with
the statutory responsibilities. These responsibilities are expressed in the Mining and Minerals
Act. Proposed operations must be consistent with development consent, all other government
agency approvals and licences, as well as with mine safety regulations and mine safety plans.
The MOP must apply best available practice and technology to all aspects of mine operations
and include strategies to control identified environmental risks. The period of a MOP may be
for a maximum of seven years. The MOP describes all mining and mining related activities,
rehabilitation plans and land use outcomes over the MOP period. The MOP must contain
plans and text which identify and define:

 area(s) proposed to be disturbed;

 mining and rehabilitation method(s) to be used and their sequence;
 existing and proposed surface infrastructure;
  progressive rehabilitation schedules;
 areas of particular environmental sensitivity;
 land and water management systems;
 Proposed resource recovery.

Developing a monitoring programme

Environmental monitoring provides the data for review, checking and revising the EMP. By
instituting regular monitoring, environmental impacts can be detected early and remedial
action implemented. The process for establishing a monitoring programme consists of the
following actions:

 specify management objectives;

 specify monitoring objectives;
 identify the scope of monitoring;
 recommend appropriate monitoring technology;
 specify how the information collected should be used in decision-making;
 define the spatial boundaries and select map scales and sites for observation,
measurement or sampling;
 select key indicators for direct measurement, observation or sampling;
 define how the data will be analysed and interpreted and how it should be presented in
monitoring reports;
 define the precision and accuracy required in the data;
 Consider compatibility of data to be collected with historical data and with related
contemporary data.

REFERENCES

International Network for Acid Prevention Acid Drainage Guide

http://www.gardguide.com/index.php/Main_Page

www.scielo.org.co/scido
Hannan JC 1995, Mine rehabilitation: a handbook for the coal mining industry, 2nd edn,
NSW Coal Association, Sydney.